If Lane Hutson was a fighter jet, he'd be a Eurofighter Typhoon: fast, highly maneuverable and reliable. If he was a gemstone, he'd be Alexandrite: highly coveted for its rarity, its high-end versatility and uniqueness. If he was a dog, he'd be a German Shepherd: highly intelligent, loyal and brave.
Hutson, of course, isn't a jet, gem (although in a different context, you could argue he is) or pooch. He's a one-of-a-kind hockey player with a brain and skillset all his own. In the course of his playing career, selling that special package to the traditionalist buyers who make hockey decisions has never been easy.
From his earliest days, the book on Hutson has been "great skater, smart, too small." In his draft year, only 16 of the 32 NHL teams even spoke with him at the combine.
"Now, for the elephant in the room," critiqued The Hockey News. "He's 5-foot-6 and listed at 165 pounds, and you can tell players bully him around from time to time on the ice. There's still time for him to grow (he's just 17, after all) and he'll need to add some bulk to really be taken more seriously on draft weekend."
"Pure mass aside, his relative lack of wingspan can be a problem when forwards go wide with speed," said Sportsnet. "Also, even with improved strength, Hutson won't be outmuscling any 220-pound power forwards in front of the net anytime soon." Hutson and his family were so concerned the size prejudice that had followed him all his life would spoil his draft chances, he brought a doctor's note to the combine.
A report from his endocrinologist claimed his bone age was younger than his biological age, which meant he still had more than a year to grow.
In the end, he didn't get much taller, but the Habs took him 62nd overall in the second round of the 2022 draft anyway. They've had absolutely no reason to regret the choice, and are more likely thanking the hockey gods he fell to them.
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Back in 2022, TSN's Craig Button was one of the few hockey watchers who saw beyond Hutson's size.
"You watch a player that completely understands everything thrown at him and completely solves everything thrown at him," said Button. "It's beyond impressive. He's a hockey genius. I would argue if Lane Hutson was 5'11" he would've been the first overall pick in his NHL draft."
"I've watched Lane for a long time and he is a really good defensive player too. He plays defence on his terms. His ability to read the play, close the play, use his stick quick in there and take the puck off, use his feet to escape is tremendous."
High praise there from a guy who's been right about NHL prospects over the years more often than not.
At every level, Hutson has proven he's a special player. There's nobody else just like him in the NHL. There are also very few guys at his level of ability who've had such a hard time gaining respect.
In his first attempt at making the USA's U18 national team, he only got to play because Quinn Hughes got hurt. In the year before he started at Boston University, his comparable was Domineck Fensore who ended up playing 3 NHL games, scoring no points. In his draft year, he was ranked 72nd overall by TSN's Bob McKenzie, who knows his stuff. He was rated 10th among defencemen, but 17 D were picked ahead of him in 2022. In his rookie NHL year, he wasn't taken seriously as the likely Calder winner until he'd distanced himself from Macklin Cellebrini by putting up unprecedented number at his position.
And every single time, Hutson ended up topping all his competition and then some, making his critics look somewhat less than prescient.
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Now, once again, Hutson is looking in from the outside at an opportunity he really wanted. When GM Bill Guerin announced Team USA's Olympic team back in August, he skipped Hutson. Habs fans knew the snub was because of his size. Guerin prefers old-school thug types like the Tkachuk brothers. However when Seth Jones pulled out with an injury, Guerin had an opportunity to fix his mistake by calling on Hutson. Instead, he went with 6'2" Jackon LaCombe, with a grand total of 97 NHL points and a career -28.
Naturally, a winning team can't be made up of only the top scorers available. It needs all kinds of contributions to be successful, but Guerin's exclusion of Hutson shows he doesn't appreciate the way he can play some extremely effective defence as well.
"There's no question that Lane Hutson, his all-world talent certainly is Olympic worthy, but I think that's you're looking at Quinn Hughes, you're looking at Zach Werenski, and you're feeling that you have enough of that kind of high-end offensive talent certainly for your power play," said analyst Pierre LeBrun. "And so I really feel that this was more about who's replacing whom in terms of skill set. Seth Jones. is such a good player at both ends of the ice, and they're looking for sort of that kind of skill set from Jackson LaCombe. More of an all-around player."
"There's too much redundancy with Quinn Hughes and he's so young," said noted Leafs-dynasty builder Brian Burke. "Same thing with Macklin Celebrini on Team Canada. This is a men's tournament. It's not the World Juniors, it's the Olympics."
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Craig Button immediately came to Hutson's defence. "I was shocked that Lane Hutson wasn't the replacement for Seth Jones, very shocked," he said. "You know Lane Hutson is one of the best defencemen in the entire NHL. We don't have to start getting into USA Hockey...but Lane Hutson is a brilliant offensive mind. He's a very, very good defensive player, and he's unique."
"Listen. Jackson LaCombe is a good player. Jackson LaCombe is not a better player than Lane Hutson. I like their chances better with Hutson on the team."
The repeated underestimation of Hutson's overall game has dogged him at every step of his journey to becoming an NHL star, but he's disproven his critics time after time. The problem with the trend is it could cost him when it really matters.
The Olympics are prestigious and making that team is an honour. Playing in the Games doesn't define a career, however. In the far distant future, when Hall of Fame voters look at a career, they consider long-term success. Did the player win the Cup? How many points did he put up? Was he recognized as the best at his position at trophy time?
Hutson's numbers in his year-and-a-half in the NHL stand up to the best competition he faces. He should already be in the conversation to win a Norris trophy as top defenceman, if not this year, then soon. (He was ninth in voting in his rookie year.) When the establishment continues to underestimate him, it won't be to their detriment...it'll be to his. And that's pretty small of them.
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